


Touch

by TheDumbBrunette00



Series: Jason Todd x Reader- Loving Him Was Red [6]
Category: Batman (Comics), Batman (Movies - Nolan), Batman - All Media Types, Red Hood and the Outlaws (Comics), Red Hood/Arsenal (Comics), Red Hood: Lost Days, Under the Red Hood
Genre: F/M, First Dates, Fluff and Angst, Hugs, I Tried, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, Jason is a Dork, Resurrected Jason Todd, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-01
Updated: 2018-12-01
Packaged: 2019-09-05 04:28:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,630
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16803652
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheDumbBrunette00/pseuds/TheDumbBrunette00
Summary: When Jason Todd climbs out of his own grave, he returns an angry, broken version of the boy he once was. These are collections of works which detail Jason's experiences with touch as he tries to return his life to normalcy...or as normal as it can be.





	Touch

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys! I hope you like the fic! Please remember to leave kudos and comments down below, also bookmark for when I post next!

When he’d come back, no one was really that happy to see him.  
Walking through the doors of the manor was more intimidating than stepping through the gates of hell, and the cold, stern looks on the faces of everyone as he walked up the twenty-two steps to the front door did nothing to alleviate his worries.   
The only somewhat welcoming face in the crowd was that of Alfred Pennyworth, the so called “Bat Family’s” loyal butler.   
He had been part of Jason’s life for as long as Bruce himself. He’d always been gentle and kind with Jason. There was never the need to impress or prove himself to Alfred, to him it didn’t matter how many bad guys he caught, or how much of a disappointment he was when compared to Dick. All that Alfred cared about was whether or not he came home at night, and that was a nice change from the usual way his relationships with others went.   
“Jason, glad to have you back,” it was Bruce who spoke first.   
Jason took a deep breath and readjusted the duffel bag slung over his shoulder, “glad to be back, Bats,” he responded.   
Bruce stiffened, “one screw up, and you’re out,” he said, “do you understand?”   
Ah, there’s the Bruce I know, Jason thought bitterly.   
“Yes, sir,” Jason said, his reply full of confidence and sass.   
He wasn’t just some little kid that Bruce could boss around anymore, and he was going to make sure everyone knew it.   
The two stared at one another in silence for what couldn’t have been more than a second or two before the soft, British voice of Alfred cut in.   
“May I take your bags, Master Jason?” he asked.   
Jason turned to look at the butler who seemingly hadn’t aged a day since he’d last seen him, and nodded, passing Alfred the bag.   
“Let me show you to your rooms, sir,” he said.   
Jason nodded as Alfred and him both side stepped the small crowd that had gathered to watch his arrival, and walked into the house.   
Following Alfred up the stairs to his old bedroom, Jason took note of how little the manor had changed over the five or so years he was gone. There were a few new pictures on the walls, the rugs were a little less vibrant then he remembered, and the floors a little more scuffed, but other than that, it was exactly the same.   
But nothing could have prepared him for the way his room looked.   
It looked exactly how he remembered leaving it, and he meant exactly.   
The bed was still unmade from the morning when he’d slipped out in search for the Joker and his goons. The hamper in the corner of the room was still half full of clothes that would no longer fit him. The bookshelf that he’d been so excited for when he opened it up his last Christmas was still sparse with old, beaten up copies of the classics. The stack of comics on his nightstand was still resting under his copy of Anne of Green Gables with the cover half torn off. He bet if you looked, the page he’d last read was still dog-eared in the upper right corner as well.   
It was all here.   
Every moment of his past life remained like it was frozen in time.  
He was in awe.   
“I couldn’t bring myself to clean it up,” Alfred said from behind him, “I just knew you’d hate anyone coming into your room.”   
Jason nodded, too in shock to confirm Alfred’s assumptions.   
“Thank you, Alfred,” Jason said.   
And before Jason could do anything, the butler had pulled him into a vice-like hug that left Jason speechless and unsure of how to respond. His hands dangled by his sides no where close to reciprocating, but he didn’t fight it either. It was good to know at least one person wanted him here.   
When Alfred pulled away a moment or so later, he straightened and smiled up at Jason.   
“Dinner will be ready at six, should I set a place at the table for you?” Alfred asked.   
It was a second before Jason shook his head, “nah,” he responded, “I’ll come down and get it.”   
Alfred nodded, “I’ll see you then,” he said, before turning and leaving the room, shutting the door behind him, and leaving Jason alone with nothing but his memories and the ghost of his touch.   
\--------------------------------------------  
It was a few weeks until the tension had somewhat dissipated enough for Bruce to allow Jason on patrol once again. And since then, he’d only been allowed to go out with Dick or Barbara, Bruce not wanting anything to do with him, and the others still too apprehensive to the brooding semi-stranger that had taken up residence in the one forbidden room of the gigantic manor.   
Most of the time patrol was uneventful. A few muggings, a drug deal, sometimes a couple of sketchy looking guys following young women through alleys. But mostly, the nights ended with nothing more than a few hours of sleep wasted and more back-up in the Gotham court system.   
Tonight was a little different, however.   
While stopping a potential burglary, one of the perps fought back and was actually able to land a couple good punches to Dick’s left jaw and nose that left him a bruised and bleeding mess.   
They’d decided to call it a night a few hours after that, heading back to the Batcave to patch each other up because later on a mugger landed a good jab to Jason’s right arm with a knife.   
Just another day protecting the good people of Gotham.   
Dick was stitching up Jason’s wound first, even though with the advanced healing from the Lazarus Pit he doubted he needed them. The two were teasing each other a little, Jason pointing out how Dick needed a mask like his, Dick pointing out that Jason needed more training because if it were him he would’ve “seen that tiny little knife coming from a mile away.”   
After all was said and done, both boys rose and Jason began walking the way to their rooms but stopped when he noticed Dick wasn’t following.   
“Are you coming?” he asked.   
Dick shook his head, “not yet,” he replied, “I asked Tim to take a look at my laptop last night and I wanna see if he’s done with it yet.”   
Tim. That name sat with Jason like curdled milk. He might of well have said “your replacement,” or “the kid we all like more than you.”  
Suddenly, Dick crossed the room and wrapped Jason into a bear hug.   
“I’m glad you’re back, little brother,” Dick said.   
And that was all Jason needed to lose it.   
Jason shoved Dick away as hard as he could, somewhat taken aback by the hurt and confused look in Dick’s eyes.   
“I’m not your damn brother,” Jason growled, “family doesn’t replace one another.”   
Without giving Dick time to respond, Jason turned on his heel and stormed out of the room fuming.   
After that, he went out on patrol with Barbara a lot more.   
\--------------------------------------------------------------------  
The word “normal” wasn’t something that Jason often associated with himself. In fact, he would go so far as to say his life was the farthest thing from normal you could get.   
But tonight had been absolutely, perfectly, deliciously normal.   
And Jason had loved every second of it.   
It was nearing the end of his first proper date with (Y/N). The two had gone out to a classic film festival and then to dinner at a diner near the cinema.   
The whole time he was with her, Jason was in awe. How could he feel more at home with her than with his “brothers?” More comfortable here than in the manor? More safe on the streets of Gotham than with Bruce and all his gadgets?   
It was like magic. She was like magic.   
“Well,” she said with a pause, “this is me.”   
They were stopped outside a nice looking apartment building not far away from the place in which they’d had their second-first meeting.   
She turned to look up at him and shot him a bright yet bashful smile before turning her gaze downward.   
“I had a really good time tonight,” she said.   
Jason felt heat rising to his cheeks, “yeah,” he said, “me too.”   
How were you supposed to end a date? He hadn’t done this since before he’d died, and even then he hadn’t done it much. He didn’t wanna mess this up, he really liked this girl and if he did something stupid and ruined all his chances with her, well...that wasn’t something he even wanted to think about.   
Suddenly, she wrapped her arms around his middle and pulled him into a hug.   
This hug was not like Alfred’s emotional embrace, or Dick’s attempt at brotherly reconciliation, rather, this was something entirely different.   
This was a soft wind, a peck on the cheek, the first sound of a bird in the spring, the smell of honeysuckles in the summer.   
This was easy.   
He found himself hugging back and, though it only lasted for a moment, it was enough to make Jason’s heart beat like a hummingbird in his chest, light and airy and bringing the garden in his heart to bloom.   
“We should do this again sometime,” she said, “next weekend?”   
Jason nodded, “yeah, that works.”   
She smiled once more and made towards the front doors of the complex.   
“See you then,” she said, “goodnight, Jason.”   
Then she was gone, slipping between the plate glass doors leaving Jason by himself on the sidewalk with the promise of seeing her again next weekend ensuring a smile stayed plastered to his face for the whole rest of the week.


End file.
